APPENDIX 22
Memorandum by the Clay Pigeon Shooting
Association
THE CPSA
The Clay Pigeon Shooting Association is the
recognised official governing body for the sport in England. It
represents the interests of more than 20,000 officially registered
clay pigeon shooters in the UK and of some 600 affiliated clubs
and shooting grounds.
It has been in existence since 1928 and its
main aims and objectives are to administer, regulate, develop
and promote the Olympic and Commonwealth sport of clay pigeon
shooting.
This submission will limit itself to issues
relating to existing laws and controls as they apply only to shotguns
(or part 2 firearms).
BACKGROUND TO
THE ENQUIRY
Before addressing the principal questions that
the committee seeks answers to, the CPSA wishes to draw attention
to the following statistical evidence and other confirmed facts
in order to provide a balanced understanding of the current situation
and to bring this enquiry into context:
— Shooting remains one of the few truly
amateur sports retaining the best of amateur virtues. It is totally
free from discrimination on the grounds of race, gender, age or
physical disability and it places great emphasis on safety and
the responsible use and understanding of firearms. It is practised
by about 1,000,000 of the most respectable and law-abiding members
of the community and its safety record is second to none.
— Public safety is not threatened by
the legitimate and licensed holders of firearms. The 1996 Home
Office statistics show that of all recorded violent crimes in
England and Wales only 1 per cent of these involved the use of
firearms. That 1 per cent, however, lumps together real firearms
with replicas, imitations, de-activated weapons and air guns,
making the numbers of guns actually capable of being fired, and
used in crime, less than half of 1 per cent of all recorded violent
crime. Of these, a very substantial number are air guns not subject
to certification, therefore, making the numbers of legally licensed
weapons within that 0.5 per cent practically devoid of any statistical
value.
— The number of illegally held firearms
in this country is virtually impossible to ascertain and estimates
vary widely. It is certain, though, that there are, at least,
as many illegally held firearms as certificated ones and the real
size of the illegal pool is likely to be several times larger
than that of the legitimate one. Most of the types of gun currently
used in crime are not even capable of being certified as automatic
and semi-automatic rifles and pistols were banned in 1988 and
1997 respectively and sawn-off shotguns have been illegal since
at least 1937.
— The number of firearms licences and
shotgun certificates have fallen dramatically over recent years
to the extent that since 1968 the losses amount to over 35 per
cent. Currently, there are only 133,000 firearm certificates and
623,000 shotgun certificates on issue in the United Kingdom, the
lowest figures ever. Over the last 30 years the licensing system
has been progressively modified and strengthened extensively to
the point where we now have some of the most stringent firearm
controls in the world. Over the same period of time armed crime
has risen by more than ten-fold and never at a bigger rate than
since the banning of handguns in 1997. There is no reliable evidence
anywhere that indicates a correlation between the incidence of
armed crime and the numbers of legally held firearms nor is there
any official research in place aimed at establishing such correlation.
— Numbers of accidents and suicides
bear witness to the excellent safety record of shooting sports.
On any given year there are, typically, some 8,000 fatal accidents
in the home and in our roads. By comparison, accidents in sport
result in only 150 deaths per annum and the last recorded fatal
accident in shooting dates back to 1988. In non-fatal accidents,
shooting accounts for only one injury out of 730 annually recorded
incidents that occur in outdoor sports.
— The number of suicides in this country
has varied little since 1900. The proportion involving firearms
has dropped by more than 46 per cent from one in 13 to one in
24. Each year for every 1,000,000 population about 80 people commit
suicide. Of these, less than four use a firearm of any description.
— The Hungerford and Dunblane tragedies
were, not surprisingly, the main two catalysts for the latest
changes in legislation. In the case of Hungerford, there was no
public enquiry and the real facts behind the massacre were never
made public. In the case of Dunblane the political agenda of an
outgoing Conservative government overruled the many sensible and
well thought-out recommendations of Lord Cullen and a ban on hand-guns
was announced by the Prime Minister before the publication of
the £1 million Cullen Report. The real facts about Thomas
Hamilton and the blatant and gross failings of Central Scotland
police in relation to his certificate renewal were never made
public knowledge. Even the immediate resignation over this issue
of the Chief Officer responsible for these failings was glossed
over by a government that elected to make policy based on prejudice
rather than fact.
— Target shooting sports have a long
and honourable history. Shooting for sport is a mass participation
activity on a par with horse riding, cricket and skiing and well
above many popular sports such as rugby, hockey, track & field
and others. Clay Pigeon Shooting, the most popular of all target
shooting sports, is enjoyed by nine to 90 year olds of either
sex as well as a substantial number of registered disabled and
wheelchair users. It is a highly addictive hobby with participants
coming from all walks of life and a great variety of social backgrounds.
More and more women and children try or participate in the sport
every year, making it a wholesome and very suitable activity for
all the family to enjoy.
— International honours in clay pigeon
shooting competitions come thick and fast every year. In fact
the English and Great Britain shooting teams appointed yearly
by the CPSA are world leaders in this sport and their regular
successes far outstrip those in any other field of sporting endeavour.
Out of only five "quota places" gained by British shooters
for the Olympic Games of Sydney 2000, four have been obtained
by CPSA members in all three clay shooting disciplines that are
part of the Olympic Games. At the end of the 1999 season, our
international competitors boast no less than seven individual
World titles as well as a host of individual European titles and
numerous World and European team medals across the entire range
of international clay pigeon shooting disciplines. Through the
efforts of our highly motivated and dedicated amateur sportsmen
Great Britain is truly a well-respected world leader in the arena
of international shooting sports.
IN CONCLUSION
The CPSA wishes to continue to co-operate closely
in all firearm related matters with the Home Office and the Police
as well as with the Home Affairs Select Committee.
We would, however, wish to make the following
representations on the three questions asked about shotguns by
the Select Committee:
— Extent of the problems caused by
misuse of shotguns—All available evidence proves conclusively
that there is no misuse whatsoever of licensed shotguns in either
urban or rural areas. Legitimate shotgun users pose no threat
whatsoever to public safety and there is nothing to suggest that
shotguns are commonly used in crime (whether licensed or not)
or that lawfully stored shotguns constitute a ready source of
weaponry for the criminal element of our society. Out of the 1.3
million shotguns legally licensed last year, not a single case
of unlawful misuse has been recorded.
— Inadequacies in the existing controls—There
is no evidence whatsoever that existing controls are in any way
inadequate. In fact these controls are far more stringent than
in most other countries in the world, which result in extremely
low levels of refusals and revocations. The latest Home Office
statistics show that last year there were 623,100 shotgun certificates
on issue in England & Wales plus another 63,000 in Scotland.
Of these, 21,000 were new certificates and 175,000 were renewed.
Less than two per cent of new applications were refused and only
0.1 per cent of renewals were not granted. Overall, only 0.2 per
cent of all certificates were revoked. These official figures
clearly demonstrate that the existing licensing controls are extremely
effective and that any extra attention should be focused on achieving
a more consistent and effective administration of the existing
regulations as they stand.
— What improvements to the system might
be usefully introduced—From the above it follows that there
is no merit whatsoever in tinkering with a system that is demonstrably
effective in the licensing and lawful keeping of sporting shotguns.
There is, however, substantial room for improvement in the present
administration of the system and the widely varying standards
applied by different firearm managers up and down the land. A
much better set of guidelines is needed and consistent implementation
of the actual Law must be achieved. The creation of a central
civilian licensing authority, as proposed by the Home Office several
years ago, would be a very positive and welcome development. This
would relieve some of the pressure from the Police and would undoubtedly
solve many of the current problems created by the fragmented way
in which the regulations are being implemented. We would also
promote the view that the various Firearms Acts and Amendments
currently in force should be unified and simplified by a single
act of Parliament and we believe that such a move would be met
with almost universal approval.
To conclude, the CPSA is of the firm opinion
that well regulated target shooting sports, and in particular
clay pigeon shooting, have a legitimate and important role to
play in the promotion of the understanding and the responsible
use of firearms by law-abiding sportsmen and women and the general
community. We wish to maintain our excellent track record in our
relations with the Police and other authorities and we believe
that we can be materially instrumental in the implementation of
the Law and in achieving a responsible response to changes in
legislation. The CPSA would, therefore, welcome the opportunity
to work with the Committee in the achievement of all these objectives.
October 1999
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